This is a follow-up to an earlier post, based on a response I received in the forum. From October 2016 to April 2017, my monthly water usage has increased by 352% over the prior year. I live alone; so, I totally control water use. I know there has been no substantial increase in monthly water use from one year to the next (i.e., between, say, October of 2015 and October 2016, etc.). I have used several methods to check for leaks, to check the accuracy of the meter, and to check the possibility that the meter was misread. Nothing! Someone in the forum posted the following: “You might also check overnight as it's not uncommon for the pressure to increase during the night possibly triggering a leak that isn't really apparent during lower pressure times.” So, for three days and four nights, I performed the following test: I used water as usual from 8:00 am to 8 pm. Then, I ceased ALL water usage during the evening until 8 am the next day. My 3 daytime readings, in cubic feet, were 7.14, 9.59, and 6.33 (average 7.69). My 4 nighttime readings were 83.07, 0.0, 85.88, and 82.72 (average 62.92). I should have expected all 0 readings. Instead, my average for nighttime readings (with all water kept off), including the one 0 reading, was over 8x the daytime readings (normal water use). That would seem to indicate an intermittent leak that occurs some nights and not others. If a reading of 80+ cubic feet indicates a leak, it would be a leak of ~ 600+ gallons. Seems more like a gusher than a leak! But there’s no indication of a leak in the house or in the crawl space. The other possibility is that the leak occurs in the pipe between the meter and the house. Does that make sense? Would I call just any plumber or a special plumbing contractor to trouble shoot this? Any help would be much appreciated.

My wife and I normally take a 2 week holiday each summer and usually just turn the HWT to vacation mode and thats it. This summer we are considering taking a 2 month vacation so shutting off some of the plumbing may be a good idea. Our home is a a one level slab; infloor hydronic radiant heat system; dishwasher; washer; inground sprinkle system. I could just leave the inground system off, grass my die but will save any potential issues. [B][U]Plan A:[/U][/B] Should I turn off the main water coming into the house from outside via the lawn shut off valve. If I do this is it just a matter of turning it on upon return and all will work again. Not sure if they could be issues with air bubbles or other odd things with the piping. My guess is that this will not effect the infloor radiant system at all as it does not run during the summer. [B][U]Plan B:[/U][/B] Do not shutoff main water valve outside; leave inground sprinkler off; turn HWT to vacation mode (tank is new); turn off water supply to washer and dishwasher. It seems when you turn off valve that are normally left on for years when you turn them back on they leak but not always. Not sure if its just better not to go crazy shutting off to many valves etc. Any tips or ideas are welcome.